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Russia Says Ready to Make T-90 Tanks in Iran

Russia announced on Thursday that it is considering a plan that involves the licensed production of T-90 tanks in Iran in what could mark a new chapter in strategic relations between the two countries.

The announcement has been made by Vyacheslav Khalitov, the deputy general director of the Ural Vagon Zavod (UVZ) which is the largest battle tank manufacturer in the world.

Khalitov has been quoted as saying by Interfax news agency as saying that the project to produce T-90s in Iran will go ahead as soon as there is a proposal from Tehran.

“We are ready, if the customer wants it,” Khalitov said.

Iran has already purchased Russia’s S-300 missile defense systems for $800 million and has started to receive the early batches of the system which will be fully delivered over the next months.

Iran’s Defense Minister Hossein Dehqan left for Moscow on Tuesday to discuss the delivery of S-300 as well as several other issues of mutual interest.

Iran’s Embassy in Moscow has announced in a statement that Dehqan is expected to discuss purchases of Russian Sukhoi Su-30 fighter jets and T-90 tanks during his visit.

Russia’s media said in February that Tehran had handed Moscow a major shopping list involving arms and military equipment.

Sources close to the Russian government said at the time that Iran’s Defense Minister Dehqan was to visit Moscow later in February to discuss new sales contracts that were collectively estimated to be around $8 billion.

“Iran would like to buy Russia’s latest S-400 Triumph anti-aircraft missile system, developed by Almaz-Antey. And they make no secret of it. On the eve of his visit to Moscow Dehghan openly said to Iranian media they want to purchase the S-400s,” Interfax quoted a source close to the Russian government as saying.

According to Interfax’s source, the second important topic of Dehqan’s talks in Moscow was expected to be Tehran’s possible procurement, or even a licensed production of the new Russian Sukhoi Su- 30SM multi-role fighter.

Bastion mobile coastal defense missile system

The K-300P Bastion-P is a mobile coastal defense missile system equipped with 3M55/Yakhont anti-ship supersonic cruise missiles intended to control straits, sea lines of communications and territorial waters. In addition, Bastion-P can protect naval bases, strategic installations and coastal infrastructure as well as defending shore areas against amphibious landings. The Bastion can take out virtually any surface ship including aircraft carrier battle groups.

The weapons, sensors and the reload and support means are mounted on a wheeled chassis which provides high mobility. Once arrived into a given location, the Bastion only needs a few minutes to get ready-to-fire its supersonic and highly maneuverable 3M55/Yakhont missiles. In September 2013, the Russian Navy’s Coast Guard Troops announced that they will be receiving 20 Bal and Bastion-P missile systems through 2020. A Bastion-P missile system was deployed in March 2014 by Russia in Crimea as a deterrent for US Navy ships.

A single Bastion-P coastal missile system consists of up to two command, control and communications vehicles; up to four self-propelled launcher vehicles with two vertically-launched Yakhont missiles each; and up to four transport/reload vehicles with three missiles each. The command post vehicle is equipped with a Monolit target acquisition radar. The missile transport vehicle takes between 30 to 40 minutes to reload a launcher vehicle. The launcher vehicle can perform a consecutive missile firing within three seconds with the missiles taking up to five minutes to hit a target at a distance of 300 kilometers. The Bastion-P coastal defense system can perform missile launch from locations at sea-level or at up to 1,000 meters of altitude and up to 10 kilometers inland from shore. A group of several Yakhont missiles can attack a given target with one missile flying at an altitude of 15,000-ft (5,000 meters) while transmitting target data to the other missiles flying at 10-15 meters above sea level.